Science's traditional answers to the question: "How does complexity arise in nature?" are given at the beginning of this book. It shows how intelligence and human culture can be traced back to atomic structure, reducing the whole of nature to simple laws of fundamental physics. However, the book then proceeds to show that "How does complexity arise?" is really the wrong question. It proposes that a more interesting question is "Why do simple structures exist at all?". Scientific reductionism is useful but does not give the ...
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Science's traditional answers to the question: "How does complexity arise in nature?" are given at the beginning of this book. It shows how intelligence and human culture can be traced back to atomic structure, reducing the whole of nature to simple laws of fundamental physics. However, the book then proceeds to show that "How does complexity arise?" is really the wrong question. It proposes that a more interesting question is "Why do simple structures exist at all?". Scientific reductionism is useful but does not give the whole truth: it tells how but not why; it looks at insides but not outsides, content but not context. The subject-matter of traditional science is re-examined from a different viewpoint, focusing on the ability of complicated rules to generate simple behaviour, through the "collapse of chaos".
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Add this copy of The Collapse of Chaos: Discovering Simplicity in a to cart. $52.88, new condition, Sold by Just one more Chapter rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Miramar, FL, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by Penguin Books.
Add this copy of The Collapse of Chaos: Discovering Simplicity in a to cart. $60.71, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Santa Clarita, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by Penguin Books.
Add this copy of The Collapse of Chaos: Discovering Simplicity in a to cart. $99.96, new condition, Sold by GridFreed rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from North Las Vegas, NV, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by Penguin Books.
Really interesting material, well written, easy to read.
A large portion of the book quickly covers all areas of basic science.
Because of this, and because I have a bioengineering background, some parts were very familiar and therefore not that interesting.
The parts I did not know, I wound up reading with a lot of interest, because they are described well, and are not all at all dry like many textbooks make them out to be.
I tend to pick up a book, read it half way though, move onto the next one, get half way though, move on, etc, etc, and then eventually make my way back to the very first book and finish it.
Thus, another benefit of the book is that you can stop reading it and pick it up again without any loss of continuity, assuming you get through the current chapter.
The material in the book requires the reader to do some active thinking, so it's not very good if you plan to read it absentmindedly like a mystery novel.
I definitely recommend The Collapse of Chaos if you're not overwhelmed with life, and are looking for some mental stimulation.
